William p



No. 609,963. Patented Aug. 30, I898.

w. P. FERGUSON.

Fl lLMlNATE CAP FOR DYNAMITE GARTRIDGES.

(No Model.)

Wrzamew. pfgzgeniaw- W 4 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.-

WILLIAM P. FERGUSON, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

FU LMlNATE-CAP FOR DYNAM lTE-CARTRIDG ES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent NO. 609,963, dated August 30, 1898.

Application filed June 14, 1897- Serial No. 640,705- (N0 model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM P. FERGUSON, of New York, in the county and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Fulminate-Caps for Dynamite- Cartridges, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in fulminate-caps for dynamite-cartridges in which provision is madefor forcing the capinto the explosive charge of the cartridge without the necessity of first making an opening for it bysomeinstrumentother than the cap itself.

A practical embodiment of my invention is represented in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a view of the cap in side elevation. Fig. 2 is a view in longitudinal section, and Fig. 3 is a top plan View.

The shell of the cap in which the fulminate is located is denoted by A. It is developed into a pronounced point a at its lower end for the purpose of readily forcing its Way into the explosive charge when pressure is applied to it. At its opposite end the shell A has crimped therein above the fulminate B the lower end of a handle 0. The handle 0 is preferably made of wood, which may be readily indented by the action of the crimper which forms the crimps a at the end of the shell A. The handle 0 extends from the shell A a distance sufficient to enable the operator to push the shell A to the desired depth within the explosive charge and is conveniently provided at its end opposite the shell A with an enlarged bearing-surface c, on which the finger or hand of the operator may press. The handle C is provided with a small central bore 0, through which the electric wires D D. for exploding the fulminate B extend, the ends of the said Wires D D within the charge of fulminate B being con nected by a filament d and the wires D D held apart by a clip d of any well-known or approved form.

In order to keep the ends of the wires D D out of the way of the operator in pressing the cap into the explosive charge, I provide the outer end of the handle 0 with a transverse slot 0 communicating with the central bore 0, so that the positive and negative wires D D may be turned in opposite directions after reaching the slot 0 and pass away from the cap below the end of the handle, leaving the latter free for exerting the necessary pressure thereon. This structure admits of inserting the cap into position for firing the charge in a moment of time and places it at such a depth as to do efiective work and at the same time holds the wires separated where they may be readily manipulated for connection with the opposite poles of the battery.

What I claim is' 1. A fulminate-cap for dynamite-cartridges comprising a casing for the fulminate, the said casing being developed at one end into a well-defined point for insertion into the explosive charge, a handle fixed to and projecting away from the opposite end of the shell along the line of its axis for pushing the fulminate-cap into the explosive charge and wires extending through the said handle into the charge of fulminate for exploding it, the said wires being so arranged as to leave the end of the handle free for the reception of the finger in pushing the cap into the cartridge, substantially as set forth.

2. A fulminate-cap for dynamite-cartridges comprising a pointed shell for receiving the fulminate, a handle fixed to and extending away from the shell along the line of its axis, the said handle being provided with a longitudinal bore and a transverse slot and wires extending from within the charge of fulminate along the longitudinal bore and thence along the transverse slot in the handle, substantially as set forth.

WILLIAM P. FERGUSON.

Witnesses FREDK. HAYNES, EDWARD VIESER. 

